The Rise of Online Payment Gateways

 The cashless payment system is growing exponentially with evolving payment methods, rising e-commerce use, enhanced broadband connectivity, and emergence of new technologies. Can increasing incidences of cyberattacks and spams hamper the growth of online payment market or will it continue to grow at a rapid rate?

The global digital payment industry is expected to hit the USD6.6 trillion mark in 2021, registering around a 40% jump in two years. The cashless payment methods are rapidly evolving with ground-breaking innovations such as mobile wallets, peer-to-peer (P2P) mobile payments, real-time payments, and cryptocurrencies. In the growing digital age, many payment technology companies are collaborating with traditional financial institutions to cater to the latest consumer and merchant preferences. Due to enhanced broadband connectivity, increasing mobile commerce, emergence of new technologies such as Virtual Reality, Artificial Intelligence, and rapid digitization, billions of people have started embracing contactless payments in both developed and emerging countries. Besides, surging e-commerce businesses, digital remittances, digital business payments, and mobile B2B payments are boosting the non-cash transaction ecosystem.

Cashless transaction method users across various generations are widely adopting the digital peer-to-peer (P2P) apps as they are more appealing and flexible to use. In-app payments or tap-and-go transactions take seconds at the checkout and allow users to make payments anytime and anywhere. Tokenization, encryption, Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), etc., offer multiple ways of securing payments while enabling digital transactions. Moreover, the users do not have to fill in information every time to complete the payment process. Thus, online payment gateways play a crucial role in the economic growth, enabling trade in the modern economy. With social distancing rules in place, digital payments have become an obligation for contactless transactions rather than just a transaction alternative to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

Digital Commerce Empowering Businesses

Electronic payment systems have become a crucial part of businesses as consumer inclination towards online shopping is expanding. With broadening internet penetration, increasing use of smartphones, and diverse options for e-transactions, most consumers are preferring online channels over traditional brick-and-mortar stores for shopping. Therefore, businesses are shifting online with an electronic payment solution to maximize their profit earnings. Automating the electronic payment system eliminates the scope of errors and saves a considerable amount of time and effort. High standards for detecting and preventing fraud in digital transaction systems and AI-based fraud detections protect users from security breaches. By providing the flexibility for making payments through credit/debit cards, mobile money, e-Wallet, etc., the businesses can expand their customer base. The electronic payment process improves customer satisfaction as customers do not need to count cash or deal with paperwork whenever they want to make the transaction.

Biometric Authentication Enhancing Security

Biometric authentication involves recognizing biometric features and structural characteristics to verify the identification of an individual. The verification method can involve fingerprint scanning, facial recognition, voice recognition, vein mapping, iris detection, and heartbeat analysis. With the rise in identity theft and fraud, biometric authentication has become a reliable and secure alternative for making digital transactions. According to a recent research, biometrically verified mobile commerce transactions are expected to constitute a massive 57% of the total biometric transaction by 2023. Biometric payment cards are also becoming popular as they support tap-and-go payments, allowing users to make faster digital transactions. The digital payment technology provider, Worldline is partnering up with the French FinTech, A3BC (Anything Anywhere Anytime Biometric Connection), to protect mobile phones from intrusion with a two-factor authentication process. The combined solution eliminates identification through a single touch, rather it recognizes fingerprints through a picture of the hand. MasterCard is planning to bring FinGo's vein-scanning payment solution that facilitates users to authenticate transactions.